The Pet Sitters (Ready For Anything) Collection, Books 1-4: Pet Sitters: Ready For Anything

By Ella Shine

Need a pet sitter? Cassie and Lina are the girls for the task… as long as Gus the talking cat can keep out of trouble!

This collection of four hilarious Pet Sitters stories by Ella Shine includes:

 

#1 Gus Makes A Fuss

Best friends Cassie and Lina would love to take a pet to the Pet Parade but it's not possible... until they're asked to pet sit Gus the cat next door. The girls might be 'ready for anything' but Gus isn't quite the cat they were expecting.

 

#2 Purple Panic

Princess Gina's owner is very fussy but Cassie and Lina think they'll be able to care for her guinea pig just fine… until Gus runs off with the pet sitting instructions and Princess Gina can't even be seen!

 

#3 Tony Takes Off

'No chaos! And no emergencies!' says Mum when Cassie and Lina pet sit again. But Tony the miniature pony isn't your average pet… And when Tony disappears from the paddock with Lina's little brother, someone's going to have to fly to the rescue.

 

#4 Glitter Jitters

Cassie and Lina think Bella the bearded dragon is SO beautiful. Gus is not so sure, and he's determined to prove it… But no one's expecting Bella to have some seriously sparkly allergies. Now everyone's got the glitter jitters, especially Gus!

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Looking for an engaging, fun junior series with great values, gorgeous characters and hilarious action, with a sprinkling of the unexpected? You've found it.

For Parents: Pet Sitters stories are written with family car trips in mind, and for shared story times. You'll find just enough tension to keep you on the edge of your seat and silly antics to keep you smiling.

For young readers: You'll love the very grumpy talking cat and awesome friendship between Lina and Cassie, and you'll want more of the action and mess.

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Reviews

"Pet Sitters: Gus Makes A Fuss is a cheeky little story that will have you wanting more - more Gus, more chaos, more pets.";Pip Rasmussen, ABC ME Presenter

"It's hard to find books for emerging readers (5-8) and this is a fun book to read together."
Katrina Roe, Radio announcer

"This is a great, fun, fresh chapter book for kids who love friends, animals and magic." Debra Tidball, children's author

"I gave my daughter your book an hour ago..... and she just finished it!!!! The first book she; had ever just sat down and read by herself!"PB, parent

"My favourite bit was when Gus jumped out the window and when the chocolate cake go on dad's head. It was super super super super super super super super super super super good - and that is an understatement. It was awesome."Bowen, 8

"I like the book because it was fun to read and I like the characters, Gus was funny. I can't wait to read the next one.Nathanael, 7

• Language: English
• Publisher: Puddle Dog Press
• Release date: Dec 1, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393554615

Book preview

The Pet Sitters: Ready For Anything Collection

Books 1 - 4

Ella Shine

Illustrated by

Lisa Flanagan

Puddle Dog Press

Contents

Barefoot Springs Map

Author’s Note

Gus Makes A Fuss

1. Wishing For Pets

2. Wanted: Pet Sitters

3. Gus Arrives

4. Pancakes And Problems

5. A Pet Sitting Disaster

6. A Talking Cat?!

7. Gus Makes A Mess

8. Bye Bye Gus

9. A Pet Parade Surprise

10. Pet Sitters Are Pet Winners

Lina and Cassie’s Very Important And Useful Pet Sitting Tips

Purple Panic

1. Ready For Anything!

2. Princess Gina Arrives

3. Invisible Gina

4. The Purple Paper Hunt

5. A Single Page

6. Gus Panics

7. Gina Makes A Mess

8. Mrs Almed Returns

9. Gus And The Guinea Pig

10. Purrrrfectly Purple

Lina and Cassie’s Very Important and Useful Pet Sitting Tips

Tony Takes Off

1. Hello Tony!

2. Timmy Goes For A Ride

3. The Twins See Something

4. Where Are Timmy and Tony?

5. Gus Tells A Long Story

6. Almost Chaos

7. Chaos And Emergency!

8. Apples In Action

9. Gus Takes Off

10. Back To Normal

Lina and Cassie’s Very Important and Useful Pet Sitting Tips

Glitter Jitters

1. Too Much Glitter

2. Introducing Bella

3. Bella Makes A Mess

4. Gus Forgets His Manners

5. Glitter Trail

6. Some Like It Hot

7. Flushed Away?

8. More Golden Glitter

9. The Trail Goes Cold

10. Found!

Lina and Cassie’s Very Important and Useful Pet Sitting Tips

Visit Our Website

Also by Ella Shine

Barefoot Springs Map

Author’s Note

This book is set in Australia and uses Australian words, phrases and spelling. For example, we say ‘Mum’ for ‘Mom’, and ‘in the bush’ means ‘in the forest’. Some things are a little different from what you might be used to. If you find yourself thinking, ‘that’s odd’, it might just be that it’s Aussie.

Pet Sitters

Gus Makes A Fuss

Pet Sitters: Ready For Anything #1

Pet Sitters: Ready for Anything #1

Gus Makes A Fuss

Published in 2020

by Puddle Dog Press

PO Box 676, St Marys, NSW, Australia 1790

www.puddledogpress.com

Text © Ella Shine 2020

Illustrations © Puddle Dog Press 2020

The Moral Rights of the Illustrator – Lisa Flanagan have been asserted.

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All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means without the prior permission of the copyright owner.

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Pet Sitters Audiobook versions are supported by the NSW Government through Create NSW.

Vellum flower icon Created with Vellum

For Richard, Andrew and Brian

One

Paw prints

Wishing For Pets

Cassie and Lina stood outside the Barefoot Springs Pet Shop feeling glum.

The Barefoot Springs Pet Parade was happening on the weekend and everyone was excited.

Everyone except for Cassie and Lina.

‘Oh, I wish I could have a pet,’ Cassie said. She put her nose to the glass. ‘Look how sweet that little mouse is!’

Lina put her nose to the glass too. She could see the displays of animals in the pet shop window. There were mice and budgies and hermit crabs and goldfish.

Cassie and Lina at the pet shop

‘They are all adorable,’ she sighed. ‘If I had a pet it would come with me everywhere.’

‘Yes!’ agreed Cassie. She spun on the spot as she had an idea. ‘Just imagine! If we had pets, I could design us both outfits and jewellery that match with our pets. How cute that would be!’ The ribbons on her hair tie swished as she came to a stop.

Lina giggled. Cassie loved dressing up, even when nothing special was happening. She had a huge collection of frilly skirts and t-shirts with sequins on them. Lina preferred play shorts and an animal T-shirt. Today she was wearing her hippo shirt. But, despite being so different, Cassie and Lina had been best friends for nine whole years—practically since they were babies.

Cassie leaned against the pet shop window and let out a big sigh. ‘We can’t have any animals at our place because when my brother Hugo was little he didn’t look after them properly. Now Dad says, No more pets!’

Lina nodded. ‘My Mum says our house is chaos already,’ she said. ‘There’s too much work with Timmy and the twin babies to have a pet.’

The two friends sighed, then started walking home.

‘What sort of pet would you get if your dad would let you?’ asked Lina. ‘Would you have a dog?’

Cassie grinned. ‘I could make little outfits for a dog, so yes.’

‘A cat?’

Cassie considered it. ‘Furry and cute. Funny and soft. So, yes.’

‘Fish?’

Cassie scrunched up her face. ‘You can’t really dress up a fish.’ Then her eyes brightened. ‘But I could decorate the tank. So it’s a yes.’

‘Yikes, you’d get all the pets!’ laughed Lina. She dug her hands in her pockets. ‘So would I. And then I’d take them to the Pet Parade and it’d be so much fun… except I can’t, and neither can you. Everyone’s going to have a pet to bring to the Pet Parade except us.’ She kicked a rock on the pavement.

Cassie and Lina dream of the Pet Parade

Cassie patted her on the shoulder. ‘Imagine if we had a pet to share. Just us two.’

Lina perked up. ‘Ooh. That would be so fun. It could live at my house some days, and then at yours.’

‘And we could take turns to feed it.’ Cassie did a twirl. ‘And brush it and bath it. And make it look pretty.’

Lina smiled. ‘And if we were both the owners, we could take it to the Pet Parade together! Which would be awesome!’

Cassie did a little dance. ‘Just imagine. Our very own pet.’

Two

Wanted: Pet Sitters

Cassie and Lina skipped over the bridge and down the road until they reached Lina’s house.

‘Hold a baby, please!’ said Lina’s dad before they made it in the front door. He passed one of the twins to Cassie and the other to Lina before running to scoop Timmy from the pantry. Timmy was covered in flour.

‘It really is chaos here!’ said Cassie to Lina.

Lina laughed, but before she could reply there was a sharp knock on the door.

‘Lina! Get the door please,’ Dad called from the kitchen.

Lina propped baby Zara on her hip and opened the door, with Cassie behind her. It was her next-door neighbour, Bernadette, who was also the owner of the Barefoot